Midnight Moments of Love
by Kirabaros
Summary: It's been about a month since Nicky has been born and Sage and Nick are working out the routine of caring for the baby. A late night diaper changing and some fluff between loving parents.


**Midnight Moments of Love**

The baby's cries were enough to wake Sage as she frowned and let her eyes flutter open. The light from the window told her that it was still nighttime as she sat up to look at the baby monitor. She glanced behind her to see her husband, Nick, fast asleep and looking like he was in the middle of a dream or something since he was frowning in his sleep. More likely the baby noise was causing it.

Taking the baby monitor, she held it like a walkie as she padded softly from their room. She paused at the foot and said, "C'est bon, Sam."

Sam made a slight sound before getting up to follow her. Ever since she was pregnant, Sam would not leave her side. The only exception was when Casey whelped and produced a litter of five puppies. They ended up keeping one, the runt called Kelly, a sweet tempered girl and receptive to the basics in training. Three dogs and a baby and they both agreed to it.

Sage gave a slight smile when she heard Sam huff beside her, leaving his warm nest where Casey and Kelly were sleeping. She reached and gave him a scratch around the ears. "You're a good boy, Sam."

Sam harrumphed low as Sage made her way to the baby's room. She smiled when she spotted the crib that Nick had put together and was a gift from his parents. She set the baby monitor on the dresser and peered over the railing and smiled. She cooed as she reached to pick up the baby, "Hey Nicky. What's wrong?"

Testing revealed he had a wet diaper and she carried him over to the changing table, noting that Sam had taken up his usual position to watch the door. She smiled and cooed at Nicky, talking to him, "I know. It's not fun, but it's okay. See? All clean now."

She may be new at taking care of her baby, but she wasn't a stranger to taking care of babies in general since she did help take care of her little sister and looked after her until she was killed. She cleaned and put a fresh diaper on Nicky before pulling out a clean onsesie. Putting it on him, she teased the baby by tweaking his covered foot and earned a slight giggle.

Sage chuckled and said, "You are such a little cutie. Just like your daddy." She picked up the baby and held him to her shoulder.

Nicky burbled as he cuddled into his mother's shoulder. He squirmed slightly as he tried to get comfortable. Sage hummed as she carried Nicky over to the rocking chair and sat in it. Nick had picked it out himself, special ordering it for comfort and as a means of showing his wife how much he appreciated and loved her. He had her injuries from the car accident in mind when he had it made and it was the most comfortable chair when all was said and done with the padding. It had been relaxing to sit in when she was carrying Nicky in her last trimester.

Sitting down, Sage adjusted Nicky in her arms so he was nestled down and she was looking down at him. Early on, Nicky liked it when she had her legs crossed when she held him to rock him to sleep. It was weird and funny that the baby knew when she had her legs crossed at nap time. It certainly had Nick laughing and Sage telling him that their son was as picky as he was. It was a pretty good joke, but Sage loved her son all the more for his quirks.

Nicky settled down once she was how he preferred. Sage smiled and looked down at his wide eyed and sleepy look and smoothed out his dark locks, murmuring, "Where did you get your unruly locks. Wasn't from me. Must be from your daddy. Don't worry. I like it." She leaned forward and kissed the baby's forehead gently."

Nicky made a sound and waved a hand. His little arm wiggled out of his blanket and his chubby palm tapped her cheek. His fingers curled automatically and rubbed her skin. He made a baby giggle and smiled up at her to the point that she couldn't resist tickling his nose earning a squeal.

Sage hummed a laugh as she pulled back. She ran her fingers to smooth out the hair that seemed to have started to grow the moment he had been born. Now he was a little over a month old and his hair was thick and curly and messy. No matter what she did to smooth them down, they insisted on being mussy. She was able to get some semblance of order as she started to rock in the chair. She murmured, "Alright. Time for bed now."

Nicky made a sound as she continued to rock, using the foot that was firmly planted on the floor to push off and rock. Using the rhythm of the rocking, Sage started to hum softly. The hum turned to singing and the singing turned to a song. It wasn't exactly a lullaby in the traditional sense. It was a Creole song she had learned and was one that she had sung when Warrick played piano and they recorded it together. Occasionally, she sang it when in thought and once she sang it to Nick for more as a making it even since he serenaded her in Spanish.

Sage continued to sing her song while rocking Nicky. She watched as he got drowsy and saw him try to fight sleep as she continued to sing to him. She smiled at that knowing that soon Nicky would be falling asleep. She would have to wait to make sure that he was asleep before putting him in the crib. Sometimes he woke up when you thought he was asleep. It was nothing unusual and something she and Nick learned quickly how to counteract that.

When she was confident that he was asleep, Sage stopped her rocking. Slowly she uncrossed her legs, planting both feet on the ground and she watched her son. When he didn't wake, she slowly stood up and started walking towards the crib. She muttered the bars to the Creole song softly for added reassurance, noting Sam's low moan he gave telling her that Nick was up and nearby. She smiled at that but continued towards the crib.

Nicky didn't stir as she lowered him into the crib. She made sure that he was tucked in and that nothing was near him that could suffocate him. She couldn't resist running her fingers through Nicky's hair one last time before retracting it and placing her hands on the rail. She closed her eyes and leaned into the solid, strong chest that was Nick's the moment his hands gently wrapped around her waist.

"Hey, everything okay?" Nick's voice murmured low and tired in Sage's ear.

Sage sighed deeply, feeling the contours of Nick's chest against her back. "Everything's fine. Just a late night nappy change," she replied as she lowered a hand to cover one of his.

"Why didn't you wake me? I would've done it," Nick said. "You've been busy enough since Nicky was born."

"We both are," Sage corrected softly as she leaned to put a finger to Nick's lip, indicating he should be quiet and pointed down at their son.

Nick made a slight face but looked down. Immediately, a smile erupted as he watched his son sleep. He lifted his free hand from his wife's waist and placed it on Sage's shoulder and gently squeezed it while maneuvering his other hand to take her hand and gently massage it. He gave a slight hum of happiness and nodded at his sleeping son.

Sage leaned into his body to look in as well. She knew that Nick spent every free moment he could with his son. He was taking FMLA leave just like she was to bond with their son and because his worry streak was still active. And people thought she was the dog with the bone. He did have his reasons though and that incident was firm in her mind. She knew that Nick wanted to be a good father to their son and she thought he was doing fine. She saw it every time he picked up the baby and held him like he was the most precious thing in the world and the way he took care of their son whether it was feeding, diapering or just playing with him.

They stayed there looking in on their son before Nick started herding them back to their room. He grabbed the baby monitor off the dresser while still holding onto Sage. Sam had gotten up and trotted ahead but never far from Sage. It had Nick roll his eyes slightly and say in a low tone, "You really did a number on Sammy, Sass. He's never left your side since before you told me you were pregnant."

"He's just reflecting his master," Sage replied in a teasing tone. "He's a protector. A hero."

Nick couldn't say anything about that. Sage had always called him her hero. Ever since he gave his full name to her and she called him an Untouchable. He hummed and kissed her temple and repeated his earlier question, "Why didn't you wake me to take care of Nicky?"

"I heard him and you were in a deep sleep. I didn't want to interrupt," Sage offered with a shrug. She yawned as she took the baby monitor and held it to make sure it was working. She turned when Nick took it back and put it on the nightstand on his side and looked at him quizzically.

"For morning stuff," Nick said with a shrug. He then added, "Sass, you do… more than anyone on anything. I'm not trying to baby you, but… I don't want you to feel you have to shoulder everything."

Sage smiled as she reached out to caress her husband's face. "I know, Nick. You're a good father right out of the gate. I've never felt burdened. Nicky is _our_ son. We're in this together. But you know me and that I like to play fair."

Nick looked at her and smiled. A hum rose from his throat. He knew that was the truth and well aware that he could overreact on things. Yet, Sage had always been understanding and knew where the motivation was coming from. He leaned in and kissed her on the lips. "I know. But you, need some sleep, Sass. I'll take care of Nicky."

Sage chuckled when he gently pushed her to her side of the bed. She cast a glance at Sam who was looking at her with a look. The loyalty went both ways. She gave a wry smile at the dog who was innocently curling up with her dog and pup and then at her husband. She didn't say anything but got into bed and was joined by Nick. She waited until he was settled before turning over to curl up against his body, her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. It was complete when he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close.

The baby monitor made some noise and both parents turned to look at the monitor on Nick's stand. After a few seconds, the sounds settled down and both parents sighed and chuckled at each other. Nick was the one to say, "Alright. Try to get some sleep." He glanced at the clock and noted the time and almost laughed. He looked at Sage and added, "It'll be fine, Sass. If Nicky wakes up I'll take care of it. Okay?"

Sage would have answered but she had already fallen back asleep. She was definitely going to take Nick up on his offer. Nick chuckled at the look of his wife before settling down and closing his eyes to catch a few more hours of sleep. He didn't mind at all.

* * *

 **A/N:** Just a moment of Sage and Nick taking care of their month old son. Enjoy.


End file.
